Business administration​

The South Australian business and administration industry employs 98,900 people, which is 12.3% of the State’s workforce.

Business and administration workers can be found within every industry, but governments, banks and insurance companies have more business and administration workers than other industries. There are also significant numbers of these workers in the health and community services industry.

Most of the jobs are in the Adelaide metropolitan area, although there are many regional jobs available.

Job openings for skilled workers

Quick facts about this industry

One third of the workforce has diploma, advanced diploma or university degree qualifications or higher.

Women make up around two thirds of the business and administration workforce.

The age spread of people working in the industry is older than the average age of the South Australian workforce.

To work in the business administration industry you need to be organised and have good attention to detail. Computer skills are essential and you have to be able to communicate well with others, particularly in writing.

Wages depend on qualifications, experience and level of responsibility. A reception assistant generally earns between $600 and $800 per week. Jobs that require a higher level of expertise and experience will attract higher earnings, such as a human resource manager, which attracts $2,000 per week or more.

School options

Ask your Vocational Education and Training (VET) Coordinator at school for information about doing vocational education during the South Australian Certificate of Education (SACE), including the Training Guarantee for SACE (or equivalent) students. Visit the VET section of the SACE website for training options in:

For more information, call the Skills and Employment Infoline on
1800 506 266.

Occupations in this industry

Administration is the hub of every organisation’s planning, staffing, directing, controlling and budgeting functions.

Administration workers are found in almost every organisation, from the front desk to the boardroom, and everywhere in between. They are found in private companies, government agencies, law courts, hospitals, factories and small businesses of every type.

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